Home / Crime and Justice / Fake Warhols Net Art Dealer Nearly 4 Years
Fake Warhols Net Art Dealer Nearly 4 Years
17 Oct
Summary
- Art dealer sentenced to 3 years, 10 months for wire fraud.
- The scheme involved selling fake Andy Warhol artworks.
- Dealer must repay nearly $2.6 million earned from fraud.
A South Florida art dealer, Leslie Howard Roberts, has received a sentence of three years and 10 months in federal prison for his involvement in a scheme to sell counterfeit Andy Warhol artworks. Roberts, 63, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was ordered to forfeit nearly $2.6 million generated from the fraudulent activity.
Operating from his Miami Fine Art Gallery, Roberts misrepresented artworks as genuine originals by the renowned pop artist. Court records indicate he falsely claimed direct acquisition from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and presented fabricated invoices to deceive collectors. U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones noted that Roberts exploited the trust placed in art dealers.
Another participant, Carlos Rodriguez Melendez, aided the conspiracy by posing as an auction company employee to authenticate the forged pieces. Melendez has since pleaded guilty and received probation. This case follows a similar sentencing in 2023, where Daniel Elie Bouaziz, another South Florida art dealer, received over two years in prison for selling fake Warhols.
